Danso—women dressing and performing as men—has been an element of Tokyo girls’ underground culture for years, but with a recent boom in otaku visibility has become more and more popular. Especially big among young women who see danso as the ideal too-perfect-to-be-true guy, danso is even becoming popular among men who think they can learn a thing or two from their cool style. There are now many ways to experience danso culture in Tokyo, but you can enjoy it from abroad, too!

Beauty pageants for boys dressed up as girls are kind of a thing in Japan now. Whether you think they’re awesome or kind of confusing, you can’t help but admit that the entrants usually manage to pull off the cute girl look surprisingly well.

This month marks the annual Miss Komaba High School Pageant, a contest that has been going on for several years now and which invites young men to dress like their female peers . Last year’s contestants were pretty good, but can this year’s pretty boys give them a run for their money? Let’s find out!

So what about this commercial? It looks so normal at first; it’s just a bunch of high school girls hanging out in a classroom, playing a guitar, reading, whatever. But then, right in the middle, something happens. Watch it for yourself and see if you can figure it out before the reveal!

Watch out sailor sisters! There’s a new line of sailor-themed clothing on sale and this time it’s the boys’ turn to come out and play. There won’t be any trousers or navy hats here though, because the only thing masculine about these clothes are the bodies that will be going into them.

It’s the Boku Sera (“I’m a Sailor”) range, which uses the Japanese male pronoun boku to highlight exactly what sets the clothes apart from all others we’ve seen before: these are girls’ sailor-style school uniforms, only now they’re built for male bodies.

Two weeks ago, online voting began for the Tokyo Institute of Technology’s Mister Bishoujo Contest, where the “prettiest” boys were put up for the internet to decide. Now the results are in and a winner has been declared!

And that’s not all: the contestants have put up a lot more photos of themselves in the meantime, so you can take a look at just how impressive their girl game is. Prepare to be amazed, and perhaps slightly confused, after the jump!

The internet can’t seem to get enough beautifulboys and handsomegirls. Not that we’re complaining; there’s something strangely mesmerizing about people who can pull off looking like the opposite gender so well that no one can tell the difference. Plus, what’s not to like about someone just being who they are and looking good while doing it?

Well, Tokyo Institute of Technology (東工大/Toukoudai or TIT… okay, get your giggles out now!) seems to feel the same way, because, alongside their Miss Toukoudai Contest they’re having a Mister Bishoujo Contest—bishoujo being the Japanese word for “beautiful young girl”—allowing voters to pick their favorite Mr. Beautiful!

Every once in a while, we touch upon the topic of crossdressing, and more often than not, the attention is placed on men crossdressing as women. Iconic male crossdressers such as Ladybeard and the “Sailor Suit Old Man” have been steadily gaining popularity, but at the same time, women who crossdress as men have also been bringing a new breeze into the entertainment scene in Japan.

Female crossdressing model Root has been the talk of the town in recent months, capturing the hearts of thousands of fangirls with her good looks and smooth moves. Some even think that she’s more desirable than actual male idols! More pictures of the lady charmer after the break!

Perhaps you’re getting ready to cosplay as your favorite opposite-gendered character or you’re on your way to one of the dedicated crossdressing bars in Tokyo or Osaka. Maybe you just want to experience what it feels like to dress as a member of the opposite sex. Whatever your reasons for wanting to make a few cosmetic changes, there’s a beauty salon in Tokyo that would be more than happy to help you out, and promises to give you the full cross-dressing treatment you require.

But sometimes it’s possible to get a little too creative. One man in China dressed up as a woman so he could sneak peeks in women’s restrooms. But based on the costume he chose, it’s not entirely clear if he’s ever actually seen a woman before in his life.

There’s this urban legend about pictures of cute girls online which claims that “if she’s too cute, she must be a guy”. Well, after seeing somanymesmerizingcross-dressers, we can’t help but feel the same way at times. If that’s the case, then, it should be only fair to say that “if he’s too suave, he must be a girl”. Because, you know, all that stuff about equality… but mostly, these Chinese and Korean girls who look stunning dressed as guys.

Joining the list is Japanese Twitter user, RiM, who looks idol-material both as a guy or as a girl!

Naoko Tachibana is a photographer and professional ‘josou’ specialist who has helped over 1,000 men to try out crossdressing, giving styling and fashion advice as well as shooting stunning photos of the completed transformation. And josou itself – male to female crossdressing – is the theme of a new solo exhibition of Tachibana’s photographic work, which opens at the Vanilla Gallery in Ginza, Tokyo this month.

Join us after the jump for a peek at the promotional shots for the exhibition, featuring Ladybeard and more!

Frequent readers of our site should by now be familiar with Ladybeard, the eccentric jack-of-all-trades whose amusing antics we’ve covered multiple times, and “Sailor Suit Old Man,” the affectionate nickname of an infamous cross-dressing Japanese man.

You may remember the duo’s previous epic collaboration on the streets of Harajuku in Tokyo, but for fans of the unusual duo we’ve got good news–the pair have teamed up once again and are ready to share their latest round of funny photos! We proudly present the “Ladybeard x Sailor Suit Old Man dream collaboration at school.”

Tokyo’s Onna no ko kurabu, or Girls’ Club, has a simple mission statement: it’s a place where anybody can enjoy dressing in girls’ clothing. The bar’s staff aims to help men who may be crossdressing for the first time, providing clothes to choose from as well as a dedicated make-up service.

And now, Girls’ Club is spreading the cuteness a little further, with the opening of a second store in the heart of Osaka’s entertainment district.